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Friday, July 26, 2013

On Making Lists and Sticking to Them!

Back in mid-June I did a post on the top ten books I'd like to read this summer. I've always been bad at keeping to lists and all, so I figured that Top Ten Tuesday post was just more filler. A wishlist, if you will. But I didn't think I'd stick to it in the slightest because me = fickle.

But guess what?? I'VE READ HALF the list in less than a MONTH!

Sorry, I got all cappy on you, but I've read half of the list in a month!!! What??

That's right kids. I read The Astronaut Wives Club, The Illusion of Separateness, and The Glass Castle each in a day (maybe a few hours more than a day, but pish posh).

The Crimson Petal and the White along with Owen Meany are big ole chunksters, so those were an investment of time, but I DID IT!

I'm so thrilled with myself. And I'm doubly thrilled with myself because not only did I finish these books...I LOVED THEM! These have been some of the best books I've read all year.

Still left on the pile:

I've actually made a start on two of these books already. The Sparrow is waiting for me on my nightstand. I read a few pages and knew I was going to be easily sucked in, so I laid this one aside until I clear up some more obligations.I've also read about 50 pages of The Dangers of Proximal Alphabets, but the writing style demands that I pay more attention, so that one will be saved for a round of weekend reading. Of these remaining titles, I think I'm most likely to NOT finish The Ask and the Answer. I am excited about it, but I know it's going to be an emotional investment. It's gonna make me cryyyy.

How are you doing on your summer reading list? Did you make one? Are you getting anywhere with it?

51 comments:

I'm always impressed by people who set goals and manage to stick to them. I actually cannot plan my reading at all. It never works. Ever. I just always end up reading based on a spontaneous, random decision...

I adore making lists and tend to do it more than is probably healthy but I am rubbish at sticking to bookish lists. I am a free-spirited reader and cannot be held down by lists (yet in real life I am obsessed with structure and routine. Yeh, I don't get that either). I think it's the rebel in me not wanting to read what I'm told :) Although your success has inspired me somewhat!

You're killing me. The Ask and the Answer would take you a day, tops, at the rate you're going. And it's not quite as bad a tear-jerker as TKONLG. Swears. In fact, I don't think that one really made me cry.

Congrats on sticking to your list! I've done really well recently with sticking to lists, specifically monthly TBRs. But I'm kind of a list geek. Anywhoosie, I'm tackling The Ask and the Answer this next month!

Way to go, Andi! I am really bad at making reading lists and not following through. I just looked at all the new books I've gotten in the past month and now know that I'll never get down with them in I keep getting library books. So I've made a list and I'll read straight down the list. Hopefully I will be as successful as you!

Good for you, Dana! I wish you luck with your list. I kept some flexibility, in that I'll let myself read other stuff, but these are books I'm legitimately excited about, so I should not let them fall to the wayside. I also still go with my mood -- a must.

Wow, I'm impressed. To get through Crimson Petal is an accomplishment although I loved that book. I picked up the audio because I'd like to revisit the story. Good luck with the rest of your list! Even when I make a list I don't follow it. Lol.

Thanks, Darlene! It was quite a commitment. Such a chunky book. I have a feeling I'll re-read it one day, but it'll take me some time to forget enough of it to want to re-read...if that makes any sense. I bet it's great on audio.

Oooh you've read The Crimson Petal and the White? I LOVE that book. I've read it twice, and even now I feel like re-reading it. It's such a good book, and completely different from the books I normally read!

And of course I love the Chaos Walking series so am happy to see The Ask and the Answer on here as well. Yay <3

I gave up on any kind of "true" TBR list ages ago because I get too drawn into shiny new books I never knew about. Last summer I did do a "summer of TBR," though, and limited myself to ONLY reading books I owned prior to 2012 (with the exception of outside review commitments). I made it through 14 books in total, and only cheated twice, so it wasn't a total bust! But not as impressive as your 50% progress on a list of just TEN.

I tend to be, too. But then I take a few minutes to really look at my stacks, and I feel bad for all those "old" books that I was legitimately excited to read when they were new. They just missed the boat. So that's one reason I'm so glad I actually stuck to my guns this time. And that's a great record re: 14 books!

The Song of Achilles is an awesome read! I hope you enjoy it. I'm doing crappy when it comes to my own list. I've only read five books in my stack. Oh well. Summer doesn't officially ends until September 22nd. I have time! :-) Keep up the good work!

I will totally read it, I'm just slightly dreading it for the emotional pitfall. BUT Heather assures me this one isn't quite as gut wrenching as the first installment. Although, I hear book 3 is a beast.

I'm starting to really get into the piles. I have a stack on my nightstand that I draw from first, but sometimes it works out, and sometimes it doesn't. We'll see how many more I can get into before summer is out!

I love a list! Even better than just any list is a book list, and a book list that I can actually check off it the best.... I'm happy to say that I have checked five books off my Classics Club list (out of 85 (!))...Also rolling right along on my list for July/August. Love it!

I make lists, but I don't always stick to them...at least, not right away. The lists are wishlists and then I get back to most of the books...eventually. In my mind, I read faster than I actually do. Right now I only have one book on my "list": an ebook collection of the first six Jack Reacher novels. I'm on Book 4: Running Blind and I hope to be into Book 5 by tomorrow, and finish Book 6 on Monday. At least, that is the plan.

I did this top ten and I'm actually doing pretty well on it! I've finished 4 of them and I'm almost done with one and I've started another. I've been reading other stuff on the side though, oops. I'm usually bad at lists (for reading) because I'm more likely to drift to whatever I feel like reading.

I don't have a summer list but I'm making good progress on my challenges this year! I'm really pushing myself to read from my lists rather than whatever sounds good at the time. I'm still stuck in the middle of Daniel Deronda though...

Good for you! I stayed away from most challenges, but making a list seems to have kept me from forgetting books so I don't leave them behind. If I don't like 'em when I try them, I move on to something else. No biggy. Good luck with Daniel Deronda!

Way to go!!! I don't have a list, but rather a towering stack on my nightstand with lots of books I've been meaning to read for a couple of years. We'll see how I do. I've gotten to a couple in the past few weeks, so I'm pleased.

I'm holding my breath until you finish The Sparrow. I hope you love it as much as I did!

I LOVE lists. I love thinking about them, writing them and I love to follow them but lately, it's not working out. I have about 30 ARCs that I listed out in a spreadsheet with their publication dates and I am way behind! Books from January are still waiting for me. So now, I've started to read from the bottom of the list, so that I can feel as if I am reviewing them on time. It's a mind game but it's working for me at the moment.